“He Hath Made Us Accepted In The Beloved”
Ephesians 1:6
The believer’s acceptance in Christ is the work of God alone. Grace is stamped upon the whole thing. From beginning to end, the work of our acceptance is God’s operation. Ephesians 1:6 echoes Jonah 2:9, declaring that which is the universal testimony of Holy Scripture: “Salvation is of the Lord!” Our being in Christ and accepted in Christ must be the work of God alone because no one else existed when it was done. It is a work finished from eternity!
God the Father put us in Christ, the
Beloved, by his sovereign decree because of his everlasting love for us.
All who believe on Christ in time were put in Christ in eternity by the choice
and decree of God. Our names were written with his in the Lamb’s Book of Life before the foundation of the world (Rev.
13:8). The Father put us into the hands of his Son, trusting him (Eph.
God the Son made us acceptable and accepted.
The Lord Jesus Christ came into this world in human flesh to fulfill all the
will of God and glorify his Father in the salvation of his people (Matt.
God the Holy Spirit
made our acceptance manifest to us.
He does not make us more acceptable to God. He adds nothing to the work of
Christ. He simply applies the work of Christ to the hearts of chosen sinners by
his almighty, irresistible grace, bringing life and immortality to light
through the gospel (II Tim.
If
this day you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord God has made you “ACCEPTED
IN THE BELOVED.” Your faith in Christ is the gift of his grace, the
fruit of being “accepted in the beloved.”
Your faith in him is the evidence of your being “accepted in the beloved.” Your faith in Christ is the assurance of
your being “accepted in the beloved.”
To God be the glory for ever and ever. Amen!
Don Fortner